Why is Genshin Impact so Popular?
Genshin Impact in a world at a standstill
Why is Genshin Impact so Popular? Ever since a virus ground the world to a halt, many people (especially gamers) scrambled to find a game that they would anchor their reality upon. With the introduction of the “new normal”, it is said that the rising esports community was greatly affected by this devastation. LAN Tournaments were limited so that the rapid advance of the virus to largely populated areas be slowed down.
With that in mind, gamers sought another game that would bring a new breath of life. On the 28th of September 2020, Genshin Impact was launched by miHoYo (a growing Chinese video game development and animation studio that is based in Shanghai, China). The game was released for Android, iOS, Microsoft Windows, Playstation 4, and the PlayStation 5 version was released on the 28th of April, 2021.
Genshin Impact introduced the world into a new open-world, action role-playing game that primarily hinges on the usage of elemental usage and a system that requires you to change into the four interchangeable characters in your party. Practically, Genshin Impact is a sandbox-type wherein players would be immersed into themes such as puzzles, exploration, combat, and even stealth.
What makes Genshin Impact popular?
For one, Genshin Impact has a very captivating storyline which made Genshin Impact so popular. You primarily control the Traveler, which is a being from the stars and is scouring the land of Teyvat for your twin sister – or brother, depending on which character you choose at the beginning of the game.
Another factor as to how Genshin Impact became popular is the amount of unique and astounding characters that you meet in your journey, each equipped with their special powers, personality, skillset, occupation, and even character development.
The land of Teyvat also offers room for players that like exploration which made Genshin Impact so popular today. One must be adventurous and patient enough to find chest, materials, gears, and puzzles to get rewards (these may range from weapon enhancement materials, level up materials, Primogems, and even exp points).
Another factor which made Genshin Impact so popular to the masses is the voice acting talent that goes into the characters. The voice actors, may it be English, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean, managed to bring life into the personalities of each character. I use the Japanese voice language, and I admire the actors and actresses in putting their hearts in the voices of the characters that they are acting.
Last but not the least, the aesthetics is the defining factor which made Genshin Impact so popular. Even on the loading screen, I’m still struck with awe by the amount of effort that the developers put into such an exceptional game. The game, by itself, boasts a graphics quality that presents a hyper-realistic feel.
Genshin Impact Gacha your Wallet or your Luck
The game featured a gacha mechanic, which allows the players to either test their “luck” or spend cash to buy in-game currency into obtaining random virtual weapons/characters. Genshin Impact managed to bring such mechanics into the rest of the world, which contributed to Genshin Impact becoming so popular.
It can be frustrating for players who want a specific character or weapon since they need to rely on either with their luck or forcibly buy in-game currency so that they could keep rolling in the banners to get their desired character or weapon. Sure, it presents clear “dangers”, especially when a player loses interest in the game after spending a large amount of cash and effort
The gacha mechanics are also present within the game, especially when one wants to “build” their character into fully dishing out the maximum damage output it could make. For this to happen, obtaining artifact set-pieces contribute vastly to making your character perform to its fullest extent. Leveling up set pieces four times would randomly choose a substat that it would provide to a specific piece, which also frustrates a vast majority of the Genshin Impact players.
Additionally, the Resin system limits the player to clearing dungeons and defeating bosses limits the player to a specific amount per day, which it would slowly regenerate per day. The number of weapons, level-up materials, and ascension materials one gets daily will be affected by how much Resin a player has.
So what is the Impact of Genshin?
It could be said that playing a gacha game is frustrating, wherein it forces the player to invest monetary resources just to “gamble” that they would obtain a character that they have “wished for” (no pun intended…maybe). It may also feel a bit tedious and repetitive in the late game, but the overall feel of the game can compensate for these differences.
Although it could be classified as a gacha game, it does not somehow let the gacha mechanics take over the rest of what makes it a good game. The storyline that inspires the player to take heart and conquer their demons, graphics that are out of this world, and its smooth gameplay allows the player to be completely immersed in the game, and the tediousness would not be felt by the player.
Personally, as a free-to-play Genshin Impact player, I had days where I felt exasperated by the gacha mechanics of this game (Even though I managed to obtain a C0 Eula which is a character that I wished that I would obtain, again pun not intended). However, the game can make me feel at ease and enjoy the rigors that the game demands.
I could categorize Genshin as one of the best open-world, action role-playing games that I have played throughout my life. Sure, I have invested money in this game (I purchased the Battlepass and Blessing of the Welkin Moon (monthly subscription so that one could get 90 Primogems daily), but I know that these help me in obtaining my desired characters, and all the characters that I’ll own in the foreseeable and unforeseeable future.
